Curators of Clay collaborates with Hakuei Kosato to release limited-edition Japanese Kiribako Sushi serving stoneware sets

Limited-edition sushi serving sets only available in India, Singapore and London showcases the rich cultural heritage of Japan and India

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SINGAPORE - Media OutReach - 15 December
2020 – Curators of Clay, a pottery atelier in Pune, India, helmed by
ceramicists Bhairavi Naik & Rohit
Kulkarni, has collaborated with Singapore-based Japanese entrepreneur and
owner of India’s largest sushi chain Sushi
and More, Hakuei Kosato (affectionately
known as Harry-san). This
collaboration resulted in a unique limited-edition collection of exquisitely handcrafted sushi serving stoneware sets.

Only one hundred
pieces of these exclusive sushi serving sets will be available for sale. Each
set is crafted under Harry-san’s creative direction. Each box is numbered,
making them collectors’ items. These exquisite boxes are also carefully made,
crafted using methods that are under the auspices of near-century old
traditional box maker Yoshida from Yamagata
Prefecture.

Each sushi
serving set tells a story of fantastic craftsmanship and amalgamation of
Harry-san’s expertise in Japanese cuisine along with Bhairavi & Rohit-san’s
signature finishes that are all
hand-crafted in the studio. Each individual item in this set of five is fired and glazed in a
combination of the ceramicists’ signature styles for this particular
collection.

Careful
craftsmanship for each plate crafted at Curators of Clay ensures that every
single piece is emblazoned in detail–making each set a journey of restrained
beauty and storytelling. For example, the chopstick holder is an ode to the
silhouette of the Sahyadri range of mountains – a range in the area of India
where both Bhairavi & Rohit-san grew up. Incidentally, this particular
range is older than the Himalayas and one of the most unique biodiversity
hotspots of the world.

The Passionate Sculptors Behind The Scenes

Bhairavi Naik
& Rohit Kulkarni, the founders of Curators of Clay, describe their work as
‘a pursuit of beauty, peace and happiness, with clay being their medium of
choice’. Since 2014, they have worked steadily to craft world class handmade
ceramics, building a loyal patronage of premier chefs & private patrons
alike. 

Harry-san first
got to know Rohit-san in Kyoto through a common friend. Upon his visit to Curators of Clay, he was
immediately drawn to the passion and craftsmanship of the team, which reminded
him of the pottery ateliers back in Japan, where ceramicists toiled to bring
beauty to the table by working only with their hands and souls, leaving the
rest to the kilns as each unique item was fired.

The positive
energy, youthful spirit, and the beautiful art objects created by the duo spurred
Harry-san to ask for this unique partnership in ceramics between two countries,
Japan and India.

This marked the
beginning of what Curators of Clay always wanted to do – fuse their
contemporary Indian upbringing with their fascination for Japanese aesthetics,
employing their craft and skill to create culturally rich and functional
ceramics that would be coveted as ‘objects of desire’.

KIRIBAKO Boxes, the epitome of Japanese tradition

Box makers
Yoshida of Yamagata Prefecture Japan are a near century-old small crafts
business. Yoshida is currently helmed by third-generation current master Mr
Nagayoshi Yoshida, who creates hand-made special Kiri Boxes (known as KIRIBAKO). Used for
hundreds of years, each KIRIBAKO is
produced from the highest-grade Paulownia wood in an elaborate process that
takes days to make. In 2019, Yoshida won the coveted Undiscovered Gems
of Japan Grand Prix.

Mr Yoshida hopes
that the KIRIBAKO will be used by many overseas. He hopes that his specialty
hand-crafted boxes will add delight to the contents of the box. In this case,
the best KIRIBAKO will be housing the stoneware of the highest-grade made by
Curators of Clay in India.

In a nod to history, where important
things were hand-delivered to guarantee it arrives safely, each of these
KIRIBAKO boxes used for these sushi serving stoneware sets will be personally
hand-carried by Harry-san himself to India and beyond on the legendary Japanese
airline All Nippon Airways known for its hospitality, that Harry-san loves.

About Curators of Clay

Owned and run by
two potters, the duo, Bhairavi & Rohit, make beautiful functional ceramics
– all with their bare hands! Curators of Clay is a pursuit of happiness, peace
& beauty, with ceramics being our medium of choice. 

About Hakuei Kosato
(Harry-san)

Harry-san is a parallel entrepreneur, social
psychologist, and sushi curator. LSE and Oxford educated, he launched
Virgin and Dyson in Japan as Head of Marketing, but he started out as a
qualified international tax expert. Now he wears many hats and runs
projects as diverse as Sushi and More (India’s first chain
of sushi outlets) to Me For the World (a social impact project)
in Oxford. A Guinness Book of World Records holder, awarded a Good Design
Award, but can’t drive a car. Still studying at the SBS Swiss Business
School in Zurich for a doctorate. Loves simple food, cooking with Kikkoman
soy sauce, books, and yoga. Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. Lives in
Mumbai & Singapore, with offices in Japan and the United Kingdom, apart
from Singapore and India. Daughter Riko Fiona Kosato attends UWCSEA
Dover. 

 

Availability

 

With just a
limited edition of 100 sets being crafted, these exclusive sets will be
available through the marquee’s own website alone.

 

750 USD / 550 GBP / 80,000 JPY / 1000
SIN$ / INR 48,500 (plus relevant taxes)

 

For more details please visit: http://curatorsofclayandharrysan.com

Hi-res images can be found in this link.

 

Follow
Curators of Clay on:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/curatorsofclay/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/curatorsofclay

 

Follow
Harry-san on:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ladittalimited/